All I heard was a loud 'fwooosh!' from the kitchen, and knew what it had to be. I, in a hurry, swiftly grabbed the fire extinguisher. Or, rather, tried to. Instead it hit the ground with a loud 'clank'. Grateful it wasn't broken, I picked it up and with a loud 'crack', I got the extinguisher working and put out the fire.
I would say that if a reader understand an author's culture it helps the reader understand what the point the author is trying to make.
Answer:
It means the moment when democracy was threatened was a terrible time, because it threatens the whole country.
Explanation:
Gorman says that we did not expect to be heirs to such a terrible time. That hour is the time when democracy and order were threatened in the country, which threatened the life and freedom of all citizens. A "terrifying hour" refers to a time that will have extremely negative results and that will accompany people for a long time.
